I wanted to simply ignore the Kentucky Clerk of Courts that was jailed for not following the law and refusing to issue marriage licenses to same sex couples, but I fell into the media trap.
It’s hard not to say something when conservatives are making this woman, Kim Davis, out to be a hero.
She was released from jail last week, and she said for the first time that she would no longer block her deputies from issuing same sex licenses. Duh…. I would imagine that her stint in jail brought about the realization that the gay marriage train has officially left the station.
You can dislike it all you want. In fact, you can hate it, but it’s now the law of the land. The Supreme Court has ruled – get over it.
I read somewhere that “Judging a person doesn’t define who they are, but defines who you are.”
Here’s a news flash, according to several national polls, support for same-sex marriage among Americans has jumped to over 60 percent. This figure is extremely significant when you consider the fact that this has been a divisive and highly emotional issue in this country. Most religious leaders and conservatives are not in favor of same-sex marriage for obvious reasons.
But many Americans seem to be coming to the conclusion that folks are gay not by choice, but because that’s who they are and how they were born.
Yeah, I know – some of you will bite my head off and say that being gay is a choice. I would ask you one question though – have you ever talked to a gay person? If so, you would know that it’s not a choice.
Those anti-gay folks in the world also need to come to grips with the real world. Polls now show that most Americans view gays as good people and productive citizens. Clearly, sexual orientation does not determine the character of a person.
Think about Dr. Martin Luther King’s “I have a dream” speech. King said, “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.” This holds true to sexual orientation – we should judge people by the “content of their character” not who they choose as a partner.
Many friends of mine, much like the pundits on television initially said that President Obama’s decision to support same sex unions was a bad one. I certainly believe that everyone is entitled to his or her own opinion, but from the results of the 2012 election, it’s now clear that the President definitely made the right decision to support gay marriage.
President Obama’s decision was monumental on so many fronts. He is the first American President to openly support same-sex marriage. And he did it during what could have been a major campaign issue during his bid for reelection.
I find it interesting that many of my fellow Christians will sentence gays to hell and damnation as if they are the big guy upstairs. But I often times look at my Christianity in a very simple way – how would Jesus deal with this situation or person.
And if you know your bible the way I do, it’s clear to me that Jesus would not forsake anyone or commit any person to hell if they are believers. The bible tells us that all of us are born into sin and no one is perfect or sinless.
I am not saying that you should feel the exact same way, but ultimately hate and discrimination against someone because of his or her sexual orientation is as wrong as racial or gender discrimination.
Whether you agree with gay marriage or not, gay Americans should be entitled to the same rights as the rest of us and that’s ultimately where most of us land on the issue.
I have a feeling that 10 years from now this will be a non-issue, but only time will tell. But regardless of how you feel about same sex marriage – let’s not make someone a hero because he or she let their personal beliefs prevent them from following the law.
As my grandfather would say, the problem with close-minded people is that their mouth is always open.
Signing off from Tallahassee,
Reggie Fullwood
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